Brandon Roy still working his way back

Posted by
Inside Hoops

Jul
24

Many people have given up on Brandon Roy ever returning to his former glory as a star guard in the NBA. No one is happy about it. Brandon is a likeable guy and a player to root for. Hopefully those doubters are proven wrong, and B-Roy is able to ball out like he did before his knees became a real issue.

As for the latest on Roy, here’s Jason Quick of The Oregonian:

Brandon Roy said he had mixed results recently after resuming basketball drills. The bad news? He says he doesn’t have the same lift on his jumps as he did during his run of three All-Star appearances. The good news is that he has surprised himself with his mobility, and he has been free of pain and swelling. Plus, his knees feel stronger than they did during the season — in part because of the nearly three months since the season ended and in part because the January surgeries are even further in the past.

So where does all this leave him and his expectations for next season, when he will make $15 million?

Again, no headlines. No expectations.

“Wait and see,” Roy said. “I’m not going to put a limit on anything. People ask, ‘Are you going to come off the bench?’ Got to wait and see. When training camp comes, I’m going to work, and that way I will put myself in a position to give myself a chance. But I don’t want to put myself in a position where I’m saying, ‘I’m going to come off the bench.’ Or, ‘I’m going to start.’

“I just want to go out there and play, and that way, Coach can say, ‘Wow, he looks this way.’ Or ,’Wow, maybe not’ … Then we will go from there.”

Until there’s reason to believe otherwise, I’m thinking Roy is best used as a Blazers sixth man, for solid contributions off the bench, with occasional flashes of brilliance here and there.